Sanding apparatus



July 29, 1969 1... P. ADAMS SANDING APPARATUS Filed Aug. .17, 1965 FIG.3

I N VENTQR. LESTER P. ADAMS FIG. 4

United States Patent 3,457,681 SANDING APPARATUS Lester P. Adams, 216Woodbine St., High Point, NC. 27260 Filed Aug. 17, 1965, Ser. No.480,270 Int. Cl. B24b 7/00, 9/00 US. CI. 51-59 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE In the furniture industry, one of the most expensive andgenerally unsatisfactory operations in the manufacture of ornamentalfurniture has heretofore been the forming of preselected or desiredrecesses on the exposed wooden surfaces of such furniture to embellishits appearance and attractively accentuate its lines. The almostuniversal practice in this regard has been to sand by hand or tomanually manipulate and operate a motor-driven sander to form thedesired recesses according to the skill of the particular operator.

The obvious drawbacks to such procedures are apparent since only ahighly skilled sander can effectively manipulate a hand-power tool so asto achieve exacting alignment and depth control over the recesses to beformed. Additionally, the operation is by necessity an expensive andtime-consuming one since the extreme care required to achieve suchprecision precludes any attempt to rapid production. The presentinvention eliminates this heretofore expensive and time-consumingoperation and provides an economically sound and reliable approach tothis problem resulting in substantial increase in production output.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an automaticsanding machine wherein ornamental recesses may be formed with precisionand accuracy to a degree not heretofore available.

A further object of this invention is to provide an automatic sandingmachine that will replace the heretofore required operator to achieveornamental recesses in furniture or other goods.

Another object of this invention is to provide an automatic sandingmachine that may be conveniently positioned at any desired location foreffective, reliable and accurate use.

A still further object of this invention is to provide an automaticsanding machine that is rugged in construction, simple in operation andeconomical in cost and that may be quickly disassembled for maintenanceand replacement of parts.

Yet still another object of this invention is to provide an automaticsanding machine wherein the sanded recess may be shaped by the design ofthe abrading surface as the furniture manufacturer may elect.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from a consideration of the accompanying drawings constitutinga part hereof in which like characters of reference designate like partsand in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of theautomatic sanding machine illustrating a casing or housing carrying areciprocating abrader for sanding a selectively dimensioned-recess;

FIG. 2 is an exploded and enlarged perspective view of the reciprocator,abrader support member and abrader surface which are reciprocablycarried by the casing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an ornamental furniture leg displayingpreshaped recesses formed by use of the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged, side elevational, cross-sectional view of thereciprocator, abrader support member and sanding means showing theirassembly in final form and the positioning of the sanding means foroperation against an ornamental furniture leg.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, there is showna base member or Working surface generally designated 10 upon whichthere is rigidly secured and held to a casing or housing 12 by means ofa plurality of retaining lugs 14 and securing bolts 16 firmly holdingcasing 12 to base 10 at a preselected position.

A sander 18, adapted to carry conventional sanding means 20, such assandpaper or emery cloth which are secured to the sander by flanges 22and screws 24, is retained by a support member 26 and consequently movesin unison with that member. A reciprocator 28 is slidably mounted alongan inside wall of casing 12 for movement (see arrow) from a normalposition and back again, thus defining a reciprocating movement oraction. A support member or flange 30 is mounted contiguous the outerwall of casing 12 and receives through an elongated slot 32 of a wall ofcasing 12 two assembly bolts 34 to retain support member 30 andreciprocator 28 firmly in alignment. Reciprocator 28 slidesbidirectionally along a straight line within its retaining groove orrecess 36 as it is moved from a first to a second position and backagain. Recess 36 is secured to the wall of casing 12 by means of aplurality of screws 38. A drive shaft 40 is carried by a bushing 42affixed to an interior wall 44 of casing 12, and a shaft 40 carries atone end 46 an eccentric cam 48 rigidly secured to shaft end 46 so as toturn positively therewith. Shaft end 46 and cam 48 are rot-atably andslidably retained Within a connecting linkage 50 so as to displace thatlinkage positively and then return it to its normal position as shaftend 46 and cam 48 revolve therein. Linkage 50 is pivotally secured toreciprocator 28 at pivot point 52 so that reciprocator 28 is responsiveto movement of linkage 50 when that linkage is driven by the cammingaction of shaft end 46 and cam 48.

Since support member 26, flange 30 and sander 18 are all interconnectedwith reciprocator 28 by means of assembly bolts 34, any movement of thereciprocator causes a like movement of these afiixed elements. Fillerwashers 54 receive bolt-s 34 within slot 32 to assure alignment thereinduring the reciprocating operation.

Shaft 40 is rotated by means of a pulley 56 driven by a belt 58 mountedon a motor pulley 60. The driving means is a conventional electric motor62 of convenient size and voltage for operation by Way of a plug 64intermating with an outlet of matching voltage.

The precise positioning of support member 26 and its carried abrading orsanding means 20 is best shown in H6. 4. It can be seen that a recess 66in an ornamental furniture piece 68 is formed with precision and extremeaccuracy by the movement of member 18 in continuous fashion over theprecisely defined area until the abrading action caused by the sandingor abrading means 20 moving against the surface of furniture leg 68forms a recess or etched indentation. Obviously a change in the shape ordimensions of member 18 will create a recess or indentation ofdimensions and shape that will respond directly to these changes.

An obvious modification of the preferred embodiment herein would be areciprocating movement differing from that of the straight lineillustrated and described so as to achieve recesses havingdistinguishing curvatures. Longitudinal recesses in furniture such asthat designated by reference 68 could well be achieved by such avariation in reciprocating motion.

While the present invention has been described primarily in terms of thefinishing of ornamental furniture, it is obvious that a multitude ofextended uses for such a device are available in a variety ofindustries.

Obviously, many modifications and variations may be made in theconstruction and arrangement of the reciprocator and sander as Well asthe placement of the housing as Well as other phases of the presentinventive concept in light of the above teachings Without departing fromthe real spirit and purposes of this invention. Such modifications ofparts and alternatives as well as the use of mechanical equivalents tothose herein illustrated and described are reasonably included andmodifications are contemplated.

What is claimed is:

1. An automatic sanding apparatus for etching recesses in an adjacentsurface comprising in combination: a base; a housing mounted on saidbase; a drive shaft rotatably held Within said housing; a bushingsecuring said shaft within said housing; an eccentric drive cam fixedlysecured to one end of said shaft Within said housing for positiverotation therewith; a plate member having a recess therein retainedWithin said housing; a reciprocator slidably movable horizontally Withinsaid recess; a drive linkage responsive to rotation of said drive camconnecting said 25 cam with said reciprocator, said linkage receivingsaid cam for rotation and being pivotally secured to said reciprocatorto urge said reciprocator in a first direction and then in a seconddirection and back again as said cam rotates with said shaft; astationary guide member having an elongated slot therein positionedadjacent said reciprocator Within said housing; a flange adjacent saidstationary guide and movable with respect thereto; an abrader supportmember responsive to movement of said reciprocator; assembly meansconnecting said reciprocator, said flange and said abrader supportmember through said stationary guide member slot; 2. sander memberprojecting from said abrader support member; retaining flangesreleasably secured to said sander member; abrading means releasablyclamped to said abrader support member by said retaining flanges forreciprocation therewith; and drive shaft rotating means rotating saidshaft so that the cam revolves and reciprocates horizontally thereciprocator, flange, abrader support member and abrading means toabrade and etch a recess in the surface disposed against the abradin-gmeans.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 423,748 3 /1890 Fleischmann 5159X 443,795 12/1890 Root 5l-59 479,304 7/ 1892 Pletscher 5162 X 2,258,73310/1941 Brackett 5162 2,720,058 10/1955 King 5159 3,133,381 5/1964 Freed5159 HAROLD D. WHITEHEAD, Primary Examiner

